Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s All-Male Security Detail: PHOTO

Legendary is Prime Minister Stephen Harper‘s contempt for women and the issues important to them. This photo of the prime minister and his security detail confirms the truth: Harper is still to wake up to the reality that women can be as lethal personal bodyguards as men. Mr. Harper, women are also smart and tough. They’re also good with semi-automatic pistols. Women’s hands, feet and bodies can also become the different between life and death for an important person under attack.

In fact, women do make better bodyguards than men. They’re far better at handling the unprecedented stress that comes with the job of a human shield. And, they react on intuition. That’s why, the world over, women are increasingly starring as bodyguards for top political leaders. Ask the Saudi royal family. Ask J K Rowling.

A few concrete examples:

First, Hillary Clinton. In her four years as U.S. Secretary of State, she engaged in an unprecedented 112-country diplomatic marathon around the world, becoming the most-traveled secretary of state in history. At one point, she traveled to 9 countries in 13 days. She visited visited both friendly and hostile countries. Women made up an unprecedented fifth of her elite Security Detail. Elle has more on “Clinton’s Angels”, profiled a few here.

Second, Colonel Gaddafi. The slain Libyan leader and long-time friend of some western leaders, such as former French president Nicolas Sarkozy and former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, was one of the most hated men in the world. Gaddafi had what western journalists often called the “Amazonian Guard” or “Revolutionary Nuns”, an all-female elite cadre of bodyguards. The Amazonian Guard protected Gaddafi from the 1990s until his terrorist-style assassination in 2011.

Third, the Ukrainian police’s elite Titan unit. Members of this unit protect politicians, businessman and bureaucrats. During the 2012 European soccer championships, many of them were hired to guard top players and officials.

The absence of females in Harper’s security detail confirms what I earlier called Harper’s chronic women problem. But that’s an understatement. Harper is at war with Canadian women. Since he came to power in 2006, the percentage of government positions held by women has decreased to less than 32.5 per cent. Then there is the vindictive treatment of former Tory MP, Belinda Stronach, and former female cabinet ministers, Helena Guergis and Lisa Raitt.

The absence of females in Harper’s security detail is an insult to some of the values we hold dear and often preach to the world. Equality and inclusiveness, for example.